O’Ban fights for DuPont-Steilacoom Road improvements to be included in Senate transportation budget

April 04, 2019

2018
Amtrak train derailment highlights need for road expansion

OLYMPIA…A key project expected to improve traffic
through DuPont and Steilacoom was one amendment not included in the Senate
transportation budget passed by the Senate Thursday. The amendment adding it to
the budget was voted down, but the chair of the Senate Transportation Committee
indicated that he remains open to discussion on the plan.

Highlighting the need for this project was the Amtrak
train derailment in 2018 and an earlier head-on collision, which necessitated
alternative routes when I-5 was shut down.

The project, which would extend 1.5 miles and cost
$3.9 million, is designed to accommodate increased traffic and support the
future development of the I-5 corridor. It will widen DuPont-Steilacoom Road by
adding a new lane in each direction from Wharf Road to Barksdale Avenue.

Currently, DuPont-Steilacoom Road is a three-lane road
with two through lanes and a dedicated two-way left turn lane in the center. This
is insufficient for continued growth in the area, and for traffic revisions
during an emergency.

Adding additional lanes in the project would allow
higher volumes of traffic to access both Joint Base Lewis-McChord and reduce
congestion in the area. It would also include a new sidewalk, curb and gutter
where none exist, connecting a local residential neighborhood to retail area
along the road.

“When the accidents happen along I-5 through
Steilacoom and DuPont, and I-5 is closed, people are pretty much stuck,”
explained O’Ban. “When drivers are forced to take alternative routes, the
communities along those routes suffer from total gridlock. When the Amtrak
train derailed, people were forced through Yelm and the Kitsap Peninsula into
six-hour delays. We must alleviate this problem.

“It would be wise to do anything we can do to support
area residents and the growth of DuPont and JBLM, considering how much
expansion we have seen in the community,” said Sen. O’Ban, R-Pierce County.
“Pierce County, and indeed the entire region, depend heavily on the economic
development from the base and those residents and businesses located in the
area outside it.

“Traffic is not only a real headache for people — it’s
very dangerous. This project is a much-needed part of the long-term plan in
alleviating that daily hassle and it’s critical to making our roadways safer.”

The expected redevelopment of the former Intel site
and another 262 acres of property would result in even heavier use the
DuPont-Steilacoom Road. Right now, the value of freight movement through the
area affected by the DuPont-Steilacoom Road project is over $3 billion.

The Senate transportation budget will proceed to the
House of Representatives for consideration.